I remember when companies could go five, ten or more years without changing or evolving – those of you of my generation know what I mean. Today everything is moving so fast that it is essential for digitally ambitious companies to be agile, very agile.

Agility to keep moving at the same pace as innovation, but also to react in time to adverse situations that can affect the business: from a global pandemic, a cyber-attack or even an external incident as was the case of Crowdstrike. The cloud provides us with the necessary agility and access to the latest technologies that companies need to stay competitive. I know I’m not saying anything new… Surely in your company you already have part of the infrastructure in the cloud, and you are thinking about continuing to expand your resources.

That’s what you should do.

Avoid the Tower of Pisa in your cloud architecture

When it comes to choosing a “cloud”, many companies opt for Azure because it not only allows them to create resources in a very simple way, but also because it is a benchmark in its commitment to AI and security. However, few ask themselves if they are really doing it right. I am referring, in particular, to companies that are not aware of the importance of having a secure architecture model.

Imagine it this way…

Every service and application you create in the Azure cloud are like the floors of a great tower, soaring skyward in pursuit of efficiency, agility and security. But… what if the foundation were shaky? Without a solid foundation, all that effort could wobble and, like the famous Tower of Pisa, tilt dangerously.

You see where I’m going…

The only thing that will prevent your tower from collapsing is to build it by implementing a secure architecture model based on governance, compliance and security policies. This will ensure that all your services and applications are aligned with your company’s rules and policies, in addition to those required by European regulations. With a well-designed cloud infrastructure, organizations can scale their operations quickly, adapt to new markets and respond effectively to new challenges. And like any good construction, your cloud tower needs a team of expert Azure architects who not only have the knowledge of the technology, but the ability to understand your company and your business processes to adapt it to the specific needs of your organization. Only then will you be able to keep moving at MAX speed! I hope you found this article interesting and… See you next time!

Since Microsoft launched its first cloud region in Madrid more than seven months ago, we have been exploring in depth what benefits enterprises can take advantage of today, where to start migrating infrastructure and how to do it.

Here are the benefits of migrating your infrastructure to Spain.

The cloud data center, Spain Central, represents more than just a geographic expansion for Microsoft. It is a strategic move that responds to the growing demand for data localization and cloud services within Europe. Located in Madrid, this center offers advanced services in productivity, data analytics, cybersecurity, storage and generative artificial intelligence.

Microsoft recommends that companies choose the cloud region closest to their location. in this case, Spain Central, but… What are the benefits?

1. Reduces latency

The closer geographically your resources are hosted in the cloud, the faster you can access them. Therefore, by migrating to Spain Central, companies operating in Spain will have shorter response times, which means that the performance of their applications and services will improve.

Low latency is vital for system and network performance, and even more so with the increasing demand for data analytics, the incorporation of AI or the use of real-time applications. Every millisecond counts.

Ensures regulatory compliance

With the advent of NIS2 and other regulations such as DORA, we have seen how the regulation on the protection of data and other digital assets has become increasingly stringent.

Ensuring compliance is a real headache and, above all, a matter of life and death for the business. Both penalties for non-compliance and reputational loss can have irreparable consequences.

In this context, Microsoft’s new cloud region in Spain allows data residency in the country, ensuring that your data is managed in compliance with local and European legislation. And this is especially crucial for sectors such as healthcare, pharmaceuticals, finance, gaming, among others.

3. Has safety as a priority

The new Microsoft cloud region in Spain is certified by the CCN-CERT for the National Security Scheme (ENS) in its High Level. This means that Spain Central’s information systems have all the necessary security measures in place to protect sensitive and critical information.

This certification covers more than 170 cloud services, including Azure, Microsoft 365, Dynamics 365 and the Power Platform. In addition, it covers artificial intelligence services such as Microsoft Azure AI Studio and Microsoft Copilot for Security, as well as all AI-based security solutions available in Azure.

Now that you are clear on the three main benefits of Microsoft’s new cloud region in Spain, it’s time to move on to the next step: Where should you start migrating your infrastructure to Spain Central?

If your company operates in Spain, it is probably time to migrate your resources to Spain Central, Microsoft’s new cloud region in Madrid. Being a new region with a lot of potential, we must take into account that there are resources that are not yet available, but they will increase progressively. Therefore, the most important thing is to know what benefits it will bring you, how to do it and where to start.

Here’s where to start.

The speed of access to your data center and cloud resources increases the closer they are geographically located. Therefore, Spain Central represents a great opportunity to improve the availability, latency and security of the infrastructure of companies in Spain and, above all, for those that have critical operations and/or need their applications to work in real time. We talked about this in our article: The 3 main benefits of migrating your infrastructure to Spain. While there are many customers to whom we are already accompanying the migration of its resources to Spain Central, there are companies that tell us that do not know where to start. In Softeng, we recommend doing so progressively, starting with what involves less risk to reach the most essential for the business. Two excellent examples as a starting point, without getting too technical, are virtual machines and SQL databases, since, by migrating them to the Data Center in Spain, will improve latency, compliance and security; something essential in an increasingly regulated business environment. In addition, Spain Central already has advanced Generative AI models, such as GPT-4 and GPT-4o, which companies can start using. These models enable natural language processing, real-time data analysis and automation of complex tasks, facilitating decision making and improving efficiency. You can see AI use cases here.

Now you know where you should start migrating your infrastructure to Spain Central. But… How to do it? Here we tell you how to migrate your resources in Azure safely.